It seems that no matter how much the team promotes him or how high his exposure is, Wang Chuqin's popularity among the public has never quite reached the level of Fan Zhendong. This is undoubtedly a very frustrating situation for star-making teams or small groups.
However, strangely enough, Wang Chuqin himself appears to thoroughly enjoy the feeling of being pursued by others, and naturally, he has come to see himself as the top male table tennis player.
This was evident when, after being forced to disband his fan group, Beijing Youth Daily Sports couldn't wait to praise him, saying:
"Just now, Wang Chuqin's fan club disbanded their fan group. Focusing on training seriously is the key, after all, you, Wang Chuqin, still have to carry the flag for the men's singles at the Los Angeles Olympics!"
Carry the flag?
I dare ask everyone present, when did you first hear the name Wang Chuqin? He emerged like a sudden prodigy, at least on par with Zhang Jike.
So ever since we heard his name, there has been competition between him and Fan Zhendong, just like Liu Guoliang and Kong Linghui back in the day, and he has even left Fan Zhendong far behind.
But strangely enough, this character who was packaged as a genius in short videos directly fell at the 32nd place barrier, creating a humiliating defeat for the national table tennis team.
More importantly, in subsequent competitions, he first lost to Linde, who was almost paralyzed, then to 14-year-old Faraji and 18-year-old Wu Chungheng.
Yet despite this, the coaching staff and media have not given up on him.
They have worked tirelessly, first creating the遮挡发球3.0 version, and then continuously hyping him up. Even if he only made it to the quarterfinals, media outlets led by the Beijing Daily have repeatedly touted his return to peak form.
Perhaps accustomed to flattery, coupled with the fact that Wang Chuqin is an honest and straightforward person, as evidenced by his overnight unfollowing of all non-group friends, it is natural that he feels he can start preparing for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics in advance.
But you must be aware that this kind of flattery that does not quite match his abilities does not benefit him; instead, it leads him to have many unrealistic thoughts, such as believing his skills are already sufficient, or that he can defeat everyone at present.
Here, let's take another look at Wang Chuqin's current main scoring method, which is to influence opponents' judgment through blocking serves and then win by抢三板.
Of course, as fans say, the referees haven't said it's a violation, so where do we get off criticizing him?
But haven't you forgotten that he is not engaged in basketball or football, but table tennis, our national sport.
Therefore, our expectations for the national table tennis team are not only to win but also to win in a spectacular and glorious manner.
Furthermore, what will Wang Chuqin do if blocking serves are banned again one day?
In summary, the current Wang Chuqin should really focus on honing his technical and tactical skills rather than blindly accepting flattery and focusing on blocking, which is absolutely detrimental to his athletic career.
Finally, let's end with He Xiaolong's words:
"Once you seriously examine it, you will be surprised to find that in any era of Chinese table tennis history, Wang Chuqin's achievements are indeed quite ordinary."